Kepler & K2 Microlensing experiment
K2 Campaign 9 took place from 2016 April 22 to July 1 (with a mid-campaign break from 2016 May 19-22) and was dedicated to a study of gravitational microlensing events. The Campaign 9 microlensing experiment involved the Kepler spacecraft observing in the +VV direction at fields toward the Galactic bulge. The aim of this program was to simultaneously observe gravitational microlensing events with K2 and from Earth in order to see a parallax effect in the shape and time of the lensing event. Additional information on the microlensing experiment can be found on the website for the K2 Microlensing Workshop, which was held in May 2015. Slides from the workshop are available here. The field of view for Campaign 9 is shown below.
The Microlensing Science Team (MST) was selected through a peer-review process during K2 GO Cycle 3 by a panel of professional volunteers. In order to best maximize the scientific returns from the microlensing data, Campaign 9 targets were selected by the MST in coordination with the K2 GO and Project Offices. Campaign 9 therefore differs from other K2 Campaigns, where targets are proposed by the community at large. However, a small number of pixels were used for approved Director's Discretionary Target (DDT) programs. The list of approved C9 microlensing targets and DDT programs can be found here for Campaign 9a and here for Campaign 9b.
All data, products, analyses, and results obtained by MST members are nonproprietary. Data are expected to be suitably reduced, analyzed, and documented, and will be required to be delivered to a public archive (reduced data and results) in a timely fashion on a schedule proposed and coordinated with the MST and the K2 GO Office. In order to aid the rapid identification and characterization of microlensing events, raw data from Campaigns 9a and 9b were made available to the community via the MAST archive. Further information on the raw data can be found here. All the processed data from Campaigns 9a and 9b are now available at MAST as well. Information pertaining to the release of the processed data can be found here.
Microlensing Science Team
Campaign 9 Microlensing Science Team members
| Name | Institution | Title | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Bennett | NASA Goddard Space Flight Center | david.p.bennett@nasa.gov | K2 Microlensing Campaign Photometry and Light Curve Analysis | abstract |
| Calen Henderson | JPL/Caltech | calen.b.henderson@jpl.nasa.gov | High-resolution Near-infrared Follow-up of K2 Microlensing Systems | abstract |
| David Hogg | New York University | david.hogg@nyu.edu | Ultra-precise photometry in crowded fields: A self-calibration approach | abstract |
| Matthew Penny | Ohio State University | penny@astronomy.ohio-state.edu | Free-Floating and Bound Planet Mass Measurements with K2: Ground- and Space-Based Photometry, Event Detection and Modeling | abstract |
| Rachel Street | Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network | rstreet@lcogt.net | A Coordinated Approach to K2/Campaign 9: Microlensing Data Reduction and Analysis. | abstract |
| Thomas Barclay (ex officio) | NASA Ames Research Center | thomas.barclay@nasa.gov | K2 Guest Observer Office Director | |
| Geert Barentsen (ex officio) | NASA Ames Research Center | geert.barentsen@nasa.gov | K2 Microlensing Experiment Lead Support Scientist |